Can you imagine checking your Facebook News Feed and suddenly seeing compromising photos of yourself from a mobile phone you traded in, visible by all your Facebook friends? That is exactly what happened to a Los Angeles woman, but Facebook was not at all to blame: A Sprint employee who was supposed to be wiping all data off the phone instead accessed its Facebook application and uploaded the photos, according to her lawsuit against the mobile carrier.

The Los Angeles Times shared the story of the woman, identified only as J. Johnson, who traded in an HTC Evo handset at the mobile carrier’s Melrose Avenue location last April, admittedly forgetting that two photos of her engaged in sexual activity were still on the phone, but having been assured that the contents of the device would be scrubbed.

According to the Times, about one month later, she received a phone call from a friend, alerting her to the presence of the photos on Facebook. The other person in the photos, identified only as D. Green, has also filed suit against Sprint, the newspaper reported.

Sprint told the Times it is investigating the allegations, with Spokeswoman Stephanie Vinge Walsh telling the newspaper in an email:

Protecting customer privacy is of the utmost importance to Sprint. We take these matters very seriously. We intend to fully investigate this matter.

And S. Mohammad Kazerouni, the woman’s lawyer, told the Times:

It was very embarrassing, shocking, traumatizing. I think it’s disgusting. I can’t fathom why someone would want to put up intimate pictures of someone they’ve never met on their Facebook page.

She had a lot of friends from out of state who made teasing comments. “We see California is treating you well.”

They (J. Johnson and D. Green) don’t know how many people have seen it. But just based on the comments, it was a lot of people. It’s been fairly traumatizing for both of them.

It certainly makes you think twice about turning your phone in without making sure it’s erased, even if you’re assured it will be.

Readers: Have you ever had any negative experiences after trading in cell phones?